Packing-machine.



F. J. HEYBAGH.

PAGKIN G. MACHINE.

APPLICATION rum) JAIL 2a, 1911.

1,016,498, 7 I Patented Feb. 6, 1912.

6 SHEBTS-SHEET 1.

' rzwzzzbr wer'l cl 67.1725 Zdcl COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPN CO.,WASHINGTON. n. I:

F. J. HEYBAGH.

PACKING MAGHINE. v APPLIOATION FILED JAN. 23, 1911.

1,016,498 Patented Feb.i6,1912.

5 SHEETSSHEET 2.

*XMMQ COLUMBIA PLANOGIAPH (10., WASHINGTON, D. c.

F. J. HEYBAGH.

v PACKING MACHINE. APPLIUATION FILED JAN. 23, 1911.

1,016,498, Patent ed Feb. 6, 1912.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

- In. 'W E I giyiifij .F. J. HEYBAGH.

PACKING MACHINE.

APPLIO'ATION FILED JAN. 23, 1911-.

1,016,498, Patented Feb. 6, 1912.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

VF.J.HEYBAOH.

Patented Feb. .6; 1912.

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LDLUMIIA PLANOGIAPH C0" WASHINGTON. D- C4 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FREDERICK J. I-IEYBACI-I, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN AUTO- MATIC MACHINERY COMPANY, OF SAVANNAH, GEORGIA, A CORPORATION OF GEORGIA.

PACKING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 6, 1912.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK J. HEY- EACH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Baltimore city, State of Maryland, have invented new and useful Improvements in Packing-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relates to improvements in apparatus for packing charges of materials and particularly those that are highly pulverized or which contain air during the handling thereof and for introducing such packed charges into receptacles.

The primary object of the invention is to provide an improved packing apparatus whereby the charges of material are packed or compressed and freed from air, preliminarily to the introduction of such charges into the receptacles, whereby each receptacle will readily receive its full charge of material and the receptacle will not be subjected to the pressure exerted upon the material during the packing thereof, so that a packing and filling machine constructed in accordance with the present invention is caable of filling receptacles which are relatively light and would be liable to breakage should the packing of the material be performed while the material is contained within the receptacle.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a packing and filling machine which embodies a plurality of hoppers which are adapted and operated to alternately receive the charges of material from a weighing machine or other suitable form of charge-forming means, and to pack or compress the charges and introduce them into the receptacles, one of the hoppers receiving a charge of material while another hopper is packing a charge of material, ample time being thereby afforded in which the charge of material may be dumped from a weighing machine into the hopper placed to receive it and in which another charge of n1aterial may be packed and transferred into a receptacle, with the result that the machine may operate with certainty and rapidity.

A further object of the invention is to provide simple and efficient means for operating the different parts of the machine at predetermined intervals and in proper sequence, and particularly to provide a mutual control between the packing mecha: nism and a weighing machine or equivalent form of charge-forming means whereby the packing mechanism will operate only after proper charges of material have been received by it from the weighing machine, and the weighing machine cannot repeat the discharging operation until the packing mechanism has packed and filled the preceding charges into the receptacles.

To these and other ends, the invention consists in certain improvements, and combinations and arrangements of parts, all as will be hereinafter more fully described, the novel features being pointed out particularly in the claims at the end of the speci fication.

In the accompanying drawing: Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a packing and filling machine constructed in accordance with the present invention, a portion of a weighing machine being shown and to which the packing machine is operatively related; Fig. 2 represents a front elevation of the packing machine as shown in Fig. 1, some of the packing units, however, being omitted in this figure; Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the parts shown in Figs. 1 and 2; Fig. 4 represents a horizontal section of the lower portion of the machine illustrating the valve which controls the discharge of the packed material into the receptacles; Fig. 5 represents a detail enlarged section of one of the hoppers, the controlling valve, and the clamp for the receptacle, the packing plunger being in position preparatory to its compressing or packing stroke, and the clamping members being about to grip the mouth of the receptacle; Fig. 6 is a detail plan View of the clamp members for one i of the units, together with the means for operating them; Figs. 7 and 8 are detail diagrammatic views of the cams for operating the clamping members and the control ling valve, respectively, Fig. 9 is a detail view showing one of the packing units of the machine; Fig. 10 represents an enlarged section on the line 1010 of Fig. 9; and Figs. 11 and 12 are detail perspective views of elements which form part of the mechanism for opening and closing the members of the receptacle clamps.

Similar parts are designated by the same reference characters in the several views.

Packing and filling mechanism constructed in accordance with the present invention is capable of use generally in packing and filling into receptacles materials which entrain air or otherwise increase their bulk while being weighed or handled, and the present invention provides a machine of this class which is capable of reducing the bulk of the material and introducing it into receptacles without subjecting the receptacles to pressure or other strains which are incident to the packing operation. The apparatus is not limited to the handling of materials of any particular kind although it is especially adapted to handle powdery or free-flying materials. Moreover, the apparatus is particularly adapted for use in combination with automatic weighing machinery, eiiicient controlling means being provided whereby the weighing machine and the packing mechanism may both operate as rapidly as the conditions of the material will permit but both mechanisms will at all times be under the control of one another. However, the packing and filling mechanism may be used independently of weighing or other chargeforming means although it is preferably'used in the manner stated above.

In the present instance the packing mechanism is shown in connection with an automatic weighing and filling machine of the type disclosed generally in my prior Patent. No. 935,506 granted September 28, 1909, 1 designating a portion of the main frame of the machine and 2 designating a conveyer which is operated at appropriately timed intervals to advance the receptacles 3 to the charge-receiving point. My prior patent aforesaid discloses as an example one form of mechanism for operating the conveyer. It will be understood, however, that the receptacles may be placed in charge-receiving position by any other suitable means. In the present instance a portion of the packing mechanism is supported by a frame 5 which is placed above the receptacle conveyer and is held in proper position by means of a pair of uprights 6 and 7. In order to enable the packing mechanism to handle receptacles of different heights or sizes, the frame may be adjustable vertically on the uprights 6 and 7 and secured in proper position by means of the set-screws 8. The rear portion of the frame 5 may be steadied by a pair of posts 9. The upper side of the frame 5 is provided with a recess or depression 10 and a valve in the form of a slide 11 is mounted to fit this recess and to reciprocate therein. This slide valve is provided with apertures 12 of a number corresponding to the number of packing units embodied in the packing mechanism, the spaces between the apertures being solid or imperforate and serving to prevent the discharge of the material from the packing hopper during the packing operation. Each aperture 12 in the slide valve is adapted to register with a discharge opening 13 above each receptacle after the packing operation and when the slide valve 11 has been shifted into one of its two positions. Fig. 5 shows the position occupied by the slide valve prior to and during the compressing and packing operation, the lower end of the packing hopper being at this time closed by a solid or imperforate section of the slide valve. To insure the passage of the material from the opening 13 into the receptacle and to insure a proper positioning of the latter beneath this opening, each packing unit of the machine is provided with a receptacle clamp which engages the mouth of the corresponding receptacle so as to properly position the receptacle, and this clamp also has a flared mouth to direct the material into the receptacle. In the present instance each clamp consists of a pair of semicircular and oppositely movable sections 14 and 15, the lower portions of the sections being adapted to engage and fit closely around the mouth of the receptacle, and the upper portions of the sections are preferably flared or tapered to form the funnel portions 16 and 17, those parts of the clamping sections between the funnel portions and the receptacleengaging portions being preferably offset inwardly as shown in Fig. 5 so as to avoid the formation of a ledge at the mouth of the receptacle so that the entire charge of material will enter the receptacle.

The clamping sections 1 1 and 15 for each unit of the machine are guided to reciprocate in a direction transverse to the direction in which the receptacles are advanced by the conveyer, the clamp sections being separated during the traveling movement of the receptacles and they are brought together and closed upon the receptacles during the intervals between the advancing movements of the receptacles.

Any suitable means may be provided for opening and closing the clamp sections at appropriate intervals. In the present instance both clamp sections are guided to reciprocate on the under side of the frame 5 by means of a pair of slides 18 and 19, the clamping section 1 1 for each unit of the machine being connected to the slide 18 while the clamping section 15 for each unit of the machine is connected to move with the slide 19, the opening and closing movements of all the clamps being simultaneous. During the opening and closing movements of the clamps, the slides 18 and 19 move in reverse directions. In the present instance this result is accomplished by a rocker 20 having one arm 21 which is connected to the slide 18 by a link 22 and another arm 23 which is formed on the rocker at a diametrically opposite point, and the arm 23 is connected by a link 24 to the slide 19, a turning movement of the rocker 20 about the upright 6 as an axis causing simultaneous opening and closing movements of the clamps. The rocker may be operated in different ways. In the present instance, it is provided with an operating arm 25 which carries a roller or projection 26. This roller or projection rests in the forked end 27 of an operating arm 28, the latter being pivoted on the bracket 29 which may be supported on the upright 6 or any other convenient support, and the bracket 29 also supports a complemental lever 30. The lever 30 has a slotted end 31 to receive the pivot pin or bolt carried by the lower end of an actuating rod 32, the upper end of the latter being connected to a lever 33 which is fulcrumed at 34 upon a stationary part of the machine frame and carries a roller or projection 35 which follows a cam track 36 formed in a cam 37, the latter being fixed upon the operating shaft 38 which may be driven by a pulley or other power-transmitting device 39 through the medium and under the control of a clutch 40. The arms 28 and 30 are preferably capable of a limited independent movement during the closing movements of the receptacle clamps, and they are preferably connected by a yielding medium that will insure a complete closing of the clamps under normal conditions but will yield should a receptacle become misplaced or should any other form of obstruction occur between the clamp sections. In the present instance, the arms 28 and 30 are provided with pins 41 and 42 which are connected by a tension spring 43, and the hub portions of these arms are provided with cotiperating lugs or projections 44 and 45. The tension of the spring 43 normally retains the lugs or projections 44 and 45 in operative relation, as shown in Fig. 1. However, should anything prevent a complete closure of the clamps, the spring 43 will yield and thereby prevent breakage of any parts of the machine.

The hoppers which receive and pack the material preliminarily to the filling of the material into the receptacles are suitably supported above and in cooperative relation with the frame 5. Each unit of the machine embodies a plurality of hoppers which are so arranged and operated that one of these hoppers may be receiving a charge of material while at the same time another hopper will be packing a charge of material. In the present instance, a pair of hoppers 46 are provided which are suitably mounted at diametrically opposite sides of an operating shaft 47, the latter being rotated at predetermined intervals and serving to reverse the position of the hoppers relative to the filling spout or funnel of the weighing machine and the packing mechanism. The shaft 47 in the present instance rests and is centered at its lower end upon an upright pivot pin 48, and this pivot pin may be adjustably mounted in the frame 5 by means of the setscrew 49. The hoppers 46 are secured to the shaft 47 by brackets 50 and the hoppers 46 are of such dimensions and are so related that when one hopper is in position to receive a charge of material from the weighing or charge-forming means, its lower end will be closed by the flat rearward extension 51 of the frame 5 and at this time the slide valve 11 will control the bottom of the opposed hopper. In the present instance, a funnel or spout 52 is mounted by a bracket 53 in such a position that its upper end is arranged to receive the charges of material dumped from the weigh hopper 54 of the weighing machine while the lower end of this funnel or spout is in a position to discharge the material into the respective hopper 46 which is positioned beneath it. Any suitable construction may be adopted for the hoppers 46. It is preferable, however, to so construct these hoppers as to permit any entrained air in the material to escape freely from the interior of the hopper during the compressing or packing operation and to also enable the packed charge of material to readily free itself from the hopper and drop into the receptacle while the charge remains in substantially the form of a solid body, thereby avoiding the development of dust and insuring the reception by the receptacle of the entire charge of material without waste or spilling. I have shown such a hopper in the present instance, it having an inner wall 55 which is composed of a gauze or screen of fine mesh that will confine the particles of the material while being compressed but will permit the air to escape through it, and an outer wall 56 which may be formed of a metal shell provided near its top with a suitable number of perforations or vents 57 These inner and outer walls of each hopper may be maintained in proper spaced relation by the vertical separators 58 which may be in the form of strips secured in position by screws 59 passing through the outer wall 56, and the two walls of the hopper are united at the top by a cylinder 60. The bore of the cylinder 60 is preferably cylindrical, while one or both of the lower walls 55 and 56 maybe formed conical with the greater diameter toward the bottom. The space between the inner and outer walls 55 and 56 is open at the bottom to permit any material that may pass into this space with the escaping air to be discharged when the valve 11 is moved into a position to bring one of the openings 12 beneath the bottom of the hopper. To facilitate the introduction of the material into each hopper 46, I prefer to provide each hopper with a flared mouth 61.

The packing operation is accomplished in the present instance by a plunger 62, one of these plungers being provided for each unit of the machine, these plungers being connected to a common cross-head 63, whereby the plungers for all of the units will be operated simultaneously and by common operating means. The lower end of each plunger is provided with a head 64 which is preferably faced with a packing disk 65 of cork or other eXpansible or yieldable material, and this disk may be held in position by a clamping plate 66 and a cooperating screw 67. The packing disk 65 has a snug fit with the interior bore of the cylinder 60 and when it descends it compresses the material contained in the hopper, thereby expelling any entrained air through the inner gauzed Wall and the exterior perforated wall and forming the charge into a compact mass. According to the present invention, this plunger performs the function not only of packing the material, but it also serves as an ejector to remove the packed charge from the hopper and to cause it to enter the receptacle.

The means for operating the several plungers of the machine consist-s in the present instance of a pair of links 68 which are connected at their lower ends to the vertically movable cross-head 63, and the upper ends of the links 68 are attached to crank pins upon the cranks 69, these cranks being set at the same angle upon a shaft 70. The shaft- 70 is fitted wit-h a gear wheel 71 which, during the operation of the machine, revolves at predetermined intervals in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 9. A portion of the periphery of this gear wheel 71 is mutilated or interrupted by the widened tooth 72. The shaft 38 has a gear 73 fixed thereon, and this gear cooperates with the gear wheel 71 on the shaft 7 O. The interrupted or mutilated portion 72 of the gear wheel 71 is so arranged as to engage or cooperate with a mutilated or interrupted section 74 on the gear 73 when the plungers reach that point in their descent which completes the packing operation, the presentation of the mutilated or interrupted sections 72 and 74 of these gears producing a pause in the working strokes of the plungers which will afford ample time for the opening of the slide valve 11, and after this valve has been opened, the continued rotation of the gear 7 8 will cause the plungers to complete their working strokes and thereby discharge the packed charges into their respective receptacles. In order to relieve the pressure upon the slide valve 11 and thereby facilitate its opening movement, the interrupted section 74 of the gear 73 is preferably provided with a clearance port-ion 74 which will permit a slight retrograde movement of the gear wheel 71 while this clearance portion is passing the interrupted section 72 on the gear wheel 71. The slide valve 11 is shifted so as to open the bottom of the hopper &6 which contains the packed charge by a cam 75 which has a cam track 76 which cooperates with a roller or projection 7 7 carried by a lever 7 8, this lever being fulcrumed on a stationary part of the machine frame by the pivot 7 9 and its free end is suitably connected to an actuating rod 80, the lower end of this rod 80 being suitably connected to a bell-crank lever 81 which is fulcrumed on a stationary bracket 82, and this bell-crank lever has a forked end 83 which cooperates with a roller or projection 84 attached to the slide Valve. The cam 7 5 is properly set upon the shaft 38 so as to shift the slide valve 11 and thereby open the bottom of the hopper containing the packed charge immediately after the pause has oc curred in the working strokes of the plungers, and after the packed charge has been introduced into the corresponding receptacle by each unit of the machine, the cam 7 5 .will return the slide valve to a position to close the bottoms of the hoppers resting above it. After each packed charge has been ejected from one of the hoppers 46 into the receptacle, the relation of the hoppers is reversed, the hopper which previously occupied a position beneath the spout or funnel 52 being brought into a position above the slide valve 11, while the hopper which has just discharged its load into the receptacle is brought into a filling position beneath the funnel or spout 52. This result is accomplished by a half revolution of the shaft 47 at appropriate intervals. In the present instance, the shaft 47 for each unit of the machine is provided at its upper end with a bevel gear 85 which co6perates with a similar gear 86 upon a transverse shaft 87 this latter shaft being common to and serving to operate the shafts 4L7 for the several units of i r the machine. The gear 87 is provided with a gear wheel 88 and this gear wheel has a pair of interrupted sections 89 formed thereon at diametrically opposite points. The shaft 38 is provided with a gear wheel 90, one section of which is toothed while the remainder of its periphery is smooth or formed as an interrupted section 91. While this interrupted section 91 is passing one of the interrupted sections 89 of the gear 88, the hoppers 46 will be held in such positions that one will receive a charge of material from the spout or funnel 52 while the other will be in position to receive its respective packing plunger. When the end of the interrupted section 91 of the gear 90 is reached, the toothed section of this gear wheel 90 will be brought into action, thereby causing the gear wheel 88 to rotate through a half revolution or until the opposite interrupted section is brought into engagement with the interrupted or smooth section 91 of the gear 90.

The cranks 69 and the packing plungers 62 may be counterbalanced by a suitable weight 92 which in the present instance is fixed to the shaft and has its mass pro-' jecting radially from this shaft diametrically opposite to the angle at which the cranks 69 are placed, the effect of this weight being to insure smoothness in the operation of the machine.

Packing mechanism embodying the present invention will generally be used in connection or in combination with automatic weighing machines and in the present instance, I have shown the packing mechanism as so used. In handling powdery materials, it has been found that such materials are affected by atmospheric conditions, that is to say, if the atmosphere is dry, such powdery materials will flow rapidly, whereas humidity in the atmosphere will cause the materials to flow sluggishly owing to their hygroscopic properties. In order to enable the packing mechanism to automatically accommodate itself to the rate of flow of the material during the weighing and packing operation and to thereby enable the weighing and packing mechanisms to operate as rapidly as the condition of the material will permit, I have provided automatic control ling means between the packing mechanism and the weighing machine or such other mechanism as may be used for dividing the material into suitable charges. I have shown the packing mechanism as applied to a weighing machine of the general type disclosed in my prior patent aforesaid, as an example of one combination. In this instance, the clutch 40 through and under the control of which the shaft 38 of the packing mechanism is operated by the power-receiving wheel 39, is provided with a clutch finger 93 and this clutch finger cooperates with a clutch-controlling lever 94, this lever having one end arranged to overlie the clutch finger 93 and thereby normally retain the same in a position to disconnect the shaft 38 from the wheel 39, and this clutch-controlling lever is fulcrumed at 95 upon the machine frame. The opposite end of the lever 94 is provided with a diagonal slot 96, and this slot receives a radial pin 97 which is fiXed to a rock shaft 98. The rock shaft 98 is mounted in suitable bearings provided by a stationary part of the frame and has a crank arm 99 which is connected by a link 100 to the free end of a cam lever 101, this cam lever being fulcrumed at 102 on a part of the frame 103 of the weighing machine and it cooperates with a cam 104 carried by the cam shaft 105 of the weighing machine. The cam shaft 105 as in my, prior patent aforesaid performs the function of starting the weighing machine upon each cycle of weighing and discharging positions, and it is operated by a power-receiving wheel 106 through the medium of a clutch 107. The clutch 107, however, is retained in an inoperative condition until all the units of the weighing machine have properly weighed out their respective charges of material and such units are in condition to dump their charges, the clutch 107 being provided for this purpose with a clutch finger 108 which cooperates with a clutch-controlling arm 109, this arm 109 being carried by a transversely movable controlling bar 110. This bar 110 is common to the several units of the weighing machine and is not permitted to move in a direction to release the clutch finger 108 and thereby permit rotation of the cam shaft 105 until the weighing operation has been completed in all the units of the weighing machine, as fully disclosed in my prior patent above-mentioned. /Vhen, however, the bar 110 has been released and moves into a position to release the clutch finger 108, the cam shaft 105 will rotate, the cam 104 on this shaft operating upon the cam lever 101 to lift it and owing to the connection of this cam lever to the rock shaft 98, the pin 97 on this rock shaft will operate in the diagonal slot 96 in the clutch-controlling lever 94 and will thereby turn this lever so as to release the clutch finger 93 and thereby permit motion to be transmitted from the wheel 39 to the shaft 38 so that after the weighing machine has performed one complete operation, the packing mechanism is released and permitted to perform its operation. In order, however, to prevent the weighing machine from repeating its operation before the packing mechanism has completed the packing operation, means is provided whereby the packing mechanism will control the operation of the weighing mechanism. Such means consists in the present instance of a bar 111 which is suitably guided to reciprocate by bearings 112, and the lower end of this bar is capable of occupying a position behind the clutchcontrolling arm 109 while the packing mechanism is operating. While this end of the bar 111 occupies a position behind the clutch-controlling arm 109, this arm cannot move into a position to release the clutch finger 108 so that the next operation of the weighing machine will be delayed, if necessary, until after the packing mechanism has completed its packing operation. The bar 111 is automatically lifted or withdrawn from the path of the clutch-controlling arm 109 by a projection 113 which is fixed to rotate with the shaft 38 and is arranged to cooperate with the projection 114 on the bar. This projection 113 will engage the projection 114 and thereby retract the bar 111 the moment the packing mechanism has completed its operation, the clutch finger 93 for the clutch 40 on the shaft 38 being automatically withdrawn at this moment by the clutch-controlling lever 94.

The operation of the apparatus may be briefly described as follows: The material to be packed is supplied to and weighed by the weighing machine in the manner disclosed in my prior patent aforesaid or in any other suitable way and after being dis charged from the weigh hopper 54 of each unit of the weighing machine, the material passes through the funnel or spout 52 and is received by one of the hoppers 4E6 which at this time is positioned beneath the funnel or spout. Immediately after the material has been discharged from all the units of the weighing machine, the controlling bar 110 is released and assuming that the packing mechanism has completed its preceding operation, the bar 110 will shift into a position to carry the clutch-controlling arm 109 clear of the clutch finger 108. .Motion will be then transmitted from the pulley 106 to the cam shaft 105, the cam 104 on the latter then operating upon the cam lever 101 and causing the link 100 to rise, the shaft 98 being thereby rocked, causing the pin 97 upon this shaft to operate in the diagonal slot 96 in the clutch-controlling lever 94 and the latter will then release the clutch finger 93 and motion from the pulley 39 will be transmitted to the shaft 38. While the material is discharging through the funnel or spout 52 into one of the hoppers 46, the other and diametrically opposite hopper will already contain a charge of the material from the preceding discharge of the weighing machine. The motion transmitted to the shaft 38 will first operate to move the plunger 62 for each unit of the packing mechanism upon its packing stroke through the medium of the gears 71 and 73. The initial movement of each plunger, however, is only a portion of its complete stroke, the initial movement being sufficient, however, to complete the packing of the material in the hopper. In the present instance, the interrupted sections on the gears 71 and 73 will cause each plunger to move approximately through a half stroke whereupon the plunger will pause, owing to the interrupted sections of these gears 71 and 73. The shaft 38, however, continues to revolve and the cam 75 thereon will operate to shift the valve 11 from a position where its solid portions close the bottoms of the several packing hoppers, into a position where an opening 12 in this slide valve is beneath each hopper containing a packed charge of material. l/Vhen the valve 11 has been so shifted, the gear 73 will reach the end of its interrupted section and a reengagement of the gear portions of these two gears 71 and 73 will produce a further step in the movement of each plunger that will cause the packed charge of material to be discharged from the particular hopper and each charge will fall into its respective receptacle as a substantially solid body. The gear 71 continues to revolve until the several plungers have been retracted and occupy their uppermost positions as shown in Fig. 2, the heads upon the plungers at such time being clear of the shiftable or rotatable hoppers. The conveyer 2 serves to position the receptacles automatically and at predetermined intervals beneath the hoppers to receive the charges therefrom. After a row of receptacles has been placed in position, the cam 37 on the shaft 38 will operate upon the arm 30 and through the medium of the spring 43 upon the arm 28, to close the clamp sections upon the mouth of each receptacle, each receptacle being held by its respective clamp while it is receiving its charge of material. After each plunger has been with drawn from its respective packing hopper, the gear wheel 90 will operate upon the in terrupted gear wheel 88 to cause a half revolution of the shaft 417 the position of the two hoppers 16 relative to the filling funnel and plunger being thereby reversed so that the empty hopper is placed in position to receive another charge of material from the weighing machine while the filled hopper is brought into position to be acted upon by the packing plunger. After each charge of material has been packed and introduced into its corresponding receptacle, the cam 37 will operate to reopen the clamp, these clamps separating by a movement transverse to the direction in which the receptacles are advanced to and removed from the filling point. After these clamps have been opened, the filled receptacles are removed and a set of empty receptacles are introduced by a traversing movement of the conveyer.

I claim as my invention 1. A packing machine of the class described comprising feeding means for the material to be packed, packing means, a hopper to receive and pack the material, said hopper and the packing and feeding means being relatively shiftable to position said hopper alternately in coiiperative relation with the feeding and packing means, and a relatively shiftable valve member cooperative with the hopper during the packing of the material therein.

2. A packing machine of the class described comprising feeding means for the material to be packed, packing means, a plurality of hoppers to receive and pack the material, said hoppers and the packing and feeding means being relatively shiftable to position each hopper alternately in cotiperative relation with the feeding and packing means, means for positioning a receptacle to receive the packed material, and a member cooperative with each hopper during the packing of the material therein.

3. A packing machine comprising feeding means for the material to be packed, packing means, a plurality of hoppers to receive and pack the material, said hoppers being reversible with respect to the feeding and packing means whereby one hopper will be in position to receive a charge of material from the feeding means and another hopper will be in position to pack a charge of material under the action of the packing means, and means for confining the material in each hopper during the packing of such material therein.

4. A packing machine comprising feeding means for the material to be packed, packing means, a pair of hoppers to receive and pack the material, said hoppers being supported rotatably whereby the position of the hoppers relatively to the feeding and packing means may be reversed, means for positioning a receptacle to receive the packed material, and means for causing packing of the material within each hopper before said material is introduced into the receptacle.

5. A packing machine comprising feeding means for the material to be packed, a packing plunger, a plurality of hoppers to receive and pack the material, means for shifting the hoppers relatively to the feeding means and packing plunger to position the hoppers alternately in cooperative relation with the feeding means and plunger, means to close the bottom of each hopper, and means for operating the plunger to pack the material in each hopper while its bottom is closed and as it is positioned in cooperative relation with the plunger.

6. A packing machine comprising feeding means for the material to be packed, a reciprocatory packing plunger, a plurality of hoppers to receive and pack the material, means for imparting progressive partial rotations to the hoppers to position the latter alternately in cooperative relation with the feeding means and plunger, means for operating the plunger to pack the material in each hopper between the progressive rotations imparted to the hoppers, and means to close each hopper during the packing operation of the plunger.

7. A packing machine comprising feeding means for the material to be packed, packing means, a plurality of hoppers to receive and pack the material, means for simultanea ously placing one of said hoppers in position to receive a charge of material from the feeding means and another hopper in cooperative relation with the packing means, means for positioning a receptacle to receive the packed material, and a valve in terposed between said receptacle-positioning means and the cooperative hopper.

8. A packing machine of the class described comprising a hopper to receive and contain the material to be packed, a valve for controlling the discharge of material from the hopper, a packing device adapted to enter and cooperate with the material in said hopper, and means for operating the packing device to pack the material in the hopper and for opening said valve to discharge the material from the hopper after the packing operation of said device has been interrupted.

9. A packing machine comprising a hopper to receive and contain the material to be packed, a valve controlling the discharge of material from the hopper, a reciprocatory packing plunger adapted to enter and operate upon the material in the hopper to pack it, and means for advancing said plunger on its working stroke by a plurality of steps and for opening said valve during an interval between two steps in the advancing movement of the plunger.

10. A packing machine comprising a hopper to receive and contain the material to be packed, a reciprocatory packing plunger, a valve for controlling the discharge of material from the hopper, means for operating the plunger on its working stroke to first pack the material in the hopper and to sub sequently eject the packed material therefrom and producing a pause in the motion of the plunger between the packing and ejecting of the material, and means controlled by the plunger-operating means to operate said valve to open it during the pause in the motion of the packing plunger.

11. A packing machine comprising a hopper to receive and contain the material to be packed, a reciprocatory packing plunger cooperative with the hopper, a valve for controlling the discharge of material from the hopper, means to operate said plunger first to pack the material in the hopper and permitting a retrograde movement of the plunger to relieve the pressure upon the material and for imparting a further movement to the plunger to eject the packed material from the hopper, and means controlled by the plunger-operating means for operating said valve to open it while the pressure of the plunger upon the material is relieved.

12. A packing machine comprising feeding means for supplying the material to be packed, packing means, a plurality of hoppers to receive and pack the material, means for shifting said hoppers relatively to the feeding and packing means to position each hopper alternately in cooperative relation to the feeding and packing means, and means for operating the packing means at predetermined intervals including a power shaft and cooperative interrupted gear wheels.

13. A packing machine comprising feeding means for the material to be packed, a reciprocatory packing plunger, a pair of rotatably mounted hoppers reversibly related. to said feeding means and packing plunger,

an operating shaft, and interrupted gears interposed between the power shaft and the hoppers and plunger for alternately actuating said parts at predetermined intervals.

14-. A packing machine comprising feeding means for the material to be packed, packing means, a pair of hoppers to receive and pack the material, said hoppers being shiftable relatively to the feeding and packing means, and a support arranged beneath said hoppers and having an imperforate section to close the bottom of each hopper as it is positioned in cooperative relation with the feeding means and having a valve at its opposite side to control the discharge of material from the hopper which is positioned in cooperative relation with the packing means.

15. In an apparatus of the class described,

the combination of feeding means for the material to be handled, a hopper to receive such material, a conveyer for conducting receptacles to and from the outlet of said hopper, and a clamp embodying sections movable to and from engagement with the mouth of each receptacle in a direction transverse to the movement of the conveyer.

16. In a machine for filling receptacles, the combination of a hopper to contain the material, a conveyer for conducting receptacles to and from the outlet of said hopper, and complemental clamping members movable to and from engagement with the mouth of each receptacle in a direction transverse to the direction of movement of the conveyer.

17. In an apparatus for filling receptacles, the combination of a hopper to contain the material, a conveyer for conducting receptacles to and from the outlet of said hopper, a pair of segmental clamping members adapted when closed to fit the mouth of a receptacle, a pair of frames connected to said clamping members, and means for simultaneously reciprocating said frames in reverse directions to open and close the clamping members.

18. In an apparatus for filling receptacles, the combination of a hopper to contain the material, complemental clamping members adapted to cooperate with the mouth of a receptacle, and means for yieldably closing said clamping members upon a receptacle.

19. An apparatus for filling receptacles embodying a hopper to contain the material, complemental clamping members movable to and from cooperative relation with the mouth of a receptacle, and means for yieldably closing said members upon a receptacle and for positively opening them.

20. In an apparatus for packing powdery materials, a hopper adapted to contain the material and having a bore which increases in diameter toward the lower discharge end of the hopper, a valve controlling the discharge of the material from the hopper, a plunger operative within the hopper to pack the material while said valve is closed and to eject the material when said valve is opened, and means controlled according to the movement of the plunger to open said valve during the period between the packing and ejecting operations of the plunger.

21. In an apparatus for packing powdery materials, a receptacle having a foraminous wall, a plunger operative-within the receptacle for compressing the material confined by said wall and for expelling the air from the material through the foraminous wall of the receptacle and means for collecting such material as may pass through said foraminous wall.

22. In an apparatus for packing powdery materials, a receptacle having inner and outer spaced walls, the inner wall serving to confine the material and to permit the escape of air therefrom, and the space between the walls serving to collect material escaping from the receptacle, and means to operate upon the material to pack it.

23. In an apparatus for packing powdery materials, a receptacle having inner and outer spaced walls, the inner wall having a mesh which will confine the powdery material and permit the escape of air from the material, and the outer wall being perforated to permit the release of air escaping through the inner wall and to collect such material as may pass through the inner wall, and means for exerting a compression upon the material while confined within the inner wall of the receptacle.

24;. In an apparatus of the class described, the combination of a charge-forming mechanism and a packing mechanism, one of said-mechanisms controlling the operation of the other mechanism.

25. In an apparatus of the class described, the combination of a charge-forming mechanism, a packing mechanism, and means for mutually controlling the operation of said mechanisms.

26. In an apparatus for handling powdery materials, the combination of a weighing mechanism, a packing mechanism, and means for preventing operation of the weighing mechanism until the packing mechanism has completed its operation.

27 In an apparatus for handling powdery materials, the combination of a weighing mechanism, a packing mechanism, and

means governed by the weighing mechanism for controlling the operation of the packing mechanism.

28. The combination of: a mechanism for forming material into charges and having a member for controlling its operation,

' mechanism for receiving the charges of material from the charge-forming means and for packing them, and means operable by iso said packing mechanism after the latter has completed its operation for releasing the controlling member of the charge-forming mechanism.

29. In an apparatus of the class described, the combination of a weighing mechanism having a controlling member, a packing mechanism also having a controlling member, means operative by the packing mechanism for releasing the controlling member of the weighing mechanism, and means operative by the weighing mechanism for releasing the controlling member of the packing mechanism.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FREDERICK J. HEYBACH.

Witnesses:

WALLIE G. HARTRIDGE, W. MORAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

